A Lesson From Nazareth
Text: Mark 6:1-13
Core Idea: Jesus offends people, which means that our faithfulness to Him will offend others. But despite this, Jesus continually sends us out to preach and demonstrate the Word, because this Word really is life-giving. Then relying on His power and authority, let us go out declaring that Jesus is the Savior King.
INTRODUCTION
Good afternoon, Lighthouse. It’s good to see you. And it’s especially good to see our children and youth joining us. As a church, we want to be intentional about worshiping together at least once a month to remind all of us that we are a church – not just the adults, but the children and youth are an important, valuable part of us that defines who we are as a community. So, don’t be afraid to get to know one another and let’s really aim to grow together as a church.
Well, we’re going through the Gospel of Mark. Last few weeks, we saw how powerful and compassionate Jesus was to those who came with this desperate faith – that was the case for the demon-possessed man, the woman who was bleeding for twelve years, and Jairus who witnessed his daughter come back from the dead. Regardless of how big or small their faith was, their faith in Jesus enabled them to experience this life-giving, life-transforming power. Today, we’ll see something completely opposite – we’ll see those who lacked faith in Jesus. Now, this story is really important for us because Mark will show us that the primary reason why people don’t believe in Jesus, why people don’t go deeper in their relationship with Him, why the truth doesn’t impact their lives as it should is ultimately the matter of the heart. Then if you have your Bibles, let’s find out how that is by turning to Mark 6:1-13. Let me read this for us.
1 Jesus left there and went to His hometown, accompanied by His disciples. 2 When the Sabbath came, He began to teach in the synagogue, and many who heard Him were amazed. “Where did this man get these things?” they asked. “What’s this wisdom that has been given Him? What are these remarkable miracles He is performing? 3 Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t His sisters here with us?” And they took offense at Him. 4 Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in His own town, among His relatives and in His own home.” 5 He could not do any miracles there, except lay His hands on a few sick people and heal them. 6 He was amazed at their lack of faith. Then Jesus went around teaching from village to village. 7 Calling the Twelve to Him, He began to send them out two by two and gave them authority over impure spirits. 8 These were His instructions: “Take nothing for the journey except a staff – no bread, no bag, no money in your belts. 9 Wear sandals but not an extra shirt. 10 Whenever you enter a house, stay there until you leave that town. 11 And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, leave that place and shake the dust off your feet as a testimony against them.” 12 They went out and preached that people should repent. 13 They drove out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them.
Amen. This is the Word of God for you today.
Let’s start from verse 1. After raising Jairus’ daughter in Capernaum, Mark tells us that Jesus travelled to His hometown – Nazareth. If you remember, Jesus was born in Bethlehem but grew up in Nazareth, which was a very small town of maybe 500 people. It wasn’t a significant place – no one knew of this place. It’s so obscure that the OT never mentions it – not once. And even when it is mentioned in the NT, it had to be explained – “Jesus came from Nazareth – and just in case you’re not sure where that is, it’s located in Galilee” (Mk. 1:9). In John 1:46, Nathanael said, “Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” – he assumed that no significant figure would ever come out of such a forgotten place. But that’s where Jesus grew up. That’s where His family was. That’s where those who knew Him since childhood were living. Now, we’re not sure why He wanted to go back to Nazareth at this time – at the peak of His ministry. It’s possible that He just wanted to spend some time with His family and minister to those who He knew. But I think there was another reason why Jesus visited Nazareth. Look at the detail that Mark adds at the end of verse 1: “accompanied by His disciples.” I think Jesus wanted to show and teach something to His disciples through their trip to Nazareth. Then let’s find out what that was. I’ve broken down this passage into three parts:
THE UNBELIEF
THE AMAZEMENT
THE LESSON
1) THE UNBELIEF
Verse 2 tells us that when the Sabbath came, Jesus began to teach in the synagogue and the people were amazed – but this wasn’t like “wow” kind of amazement; it was more like “huh, interesting” kind of amazement. They were surprised and confused at the same time because they knew Jesus – they knew the kind of education He received in Nazareth (which was essentially none) – and they couldn’t figure out how He could teach something so incredible, so insightful, and so powerful. I think it would be the equivalent of seeing your childhood friend whom you haven’t seen for years come back as a rockstar or a rising star in the NBA. You just wouldn’t expect that to happen. In the same way, they didn’t know what to make of Jesus. They must have heard all the miracles that He performed throughout Galilee. So, they weren’t denying that He had wisdom and power; they just couldn’t understand how He could do this, which was why they asked questions like, “Where did this man get these things? What’s this wisdom that has been given Him? What are these remarkable miracles He is performing?”
Now, let’s think about the questions in verse 3 because it reveals a lot more of what was going on in their hearts. They asked, “Isn’t this the carpenter?” We’re not sure if they were looking down at Him for being a carpenter (maybe because carpenters were not high on the ladder of status in their society) or if it was just an expression of surprise (“how can this ordinary man become so extraordinary? Sure, carpenters are hard-working people but they’re not the Messiah!”). But they also asked, “Isn’t this Mary’s son?” It’s actually very interesting that they were calling Jesus Mary’s son because, in their culture, the Jews identified people according to their relationships with their fathers, not with their mothers. It would’ve been more proper for Jesus to be referred to as Joseph’s son – even if Joseph was dead by this time. Then why was Jesus called Mary’s son? Many scholars agree that it must have been because the people in Nazareth were still talking about the fact that Joseph might not have been the father. You can’t hide things in a small town. The date of their wedding and Jesus’ birth just didn’t add up. And they were essentially saying, “Isn’t He that carpenter who was the son of that woman? We know that family.” Then this comment was nothing short of ridicule. In fact, verse 3 says that “they took offense at Him.” The people of Nazareth weren’t just ignoring Jesus; they were rejecting and being hostile toward Him. Why? Because they couldn’t accept His ordinariness. They were saying, “If this is the Messiah who’s going to save us, He couldn’t be so ordinary.” In other words, they weren’t impressed by Jesus, and they couldn’t accept that this man who grew up with them, who ate with them, who was one of them was the Messiah. They couldn’t believe in Him not because they didn’t know Him but because they knew Him too well – or at least they thought they did.
Friends, you need to hear this truth: it’s possible to be too familiar with Jesus that it blinds you from seeing beyond what you know about Him, which isn’t much. I say this because we can dig and dig but will never hit the bottom when it comes to knowing Jesus. Listen to what Dane Ortlund says, “Consider the possibility that your current mental idea of Jesus is the tip of the iceberg. That there are wondrous depths to Him, realities about Him, still awaiting your discovery.” In other words, if you think you’ve arrived, you’ve actually only scratched the surface – He’s much more glorious, gracious, powerful, and at the same time, much more compassionate than we could ever imagine.
Then let this truth sink in for a second. The people in Nazareth were so familiar with Jesus that it prevented them from seeing who He really was; it prevented them from deepening their relationship with Him, worshiping Him, and surrendering their lives to Him. Then let me ask you, “Are you so familiar with Jesus that you’re no longer impressed by Him today? Are you so familiar with His Word that nothing really moves you, nothing stirs your heart anymore? Are you so familiar with Jesus that coming to church on Sunday has become nothing but a meaningless routine in your life?” You just come because that’s what you’ve been doing all your life; but when you do come, you come with no expectation – it’s just another Sunday. Brothers and sisters, if this is you, you are treading dangerous waters – this is a scary place to be. You might not be outright against Jesus, but you have no passion for Him either. You like what He says and does, but you’re not ready to throw away everything you have and follow Him. You like Jesus but you don’t love Him enough to give up your life for Him. If this is where you are, pray earnestly that the Spirit will awaken your heart today. Ask others to pray for you that your heart will be revived to see and feel and experience Him for who He really is. Lighthouse family, we must pray for our children and youth that they don’t become so familiar with Jesus in such a way that it blinds them from seeing who Jesus really is. We must help them by modelling for them how their knowledge of Jesus can be used to breathe life into their lives, to bring hope and power to live a life worthy of the gospel. All of us must make every effort to fight this because if we don’t do anything about it, it will lead to something much more destructive, which is what we find in verse 5.
“He could not do any miracles there, except lay His hands on a few sick people and heal them.” Think about that for a bit. First, it doesn’t mean that Jesus suddenly lost His power when He went to Nazareth. And it certainly doesn’t mean that Jesus is limited and powerless unless people have faith. It’s not like the movie Elf where people needed to believe in Santa in order for the sleigh to fly. No, that’s not what Mark means here. Let me borrow what the scholar William Lane says, “It is not Mark’s intention to stress Jesus’ inability when he states that He could perform no miracles at Nazareth. His purpose is rather to indicate that Jesus was not free to exercise His power in these circumstances. The performance of miracles in the absence of faith could have resulted only in the aggravation of human guilt and the hardening of men’s hearts against God.” In other words, Jesus never meaninglessly, for attraction purposes, just threw miracles at people, which is why He left Nazareth to preach in other villages. Jesus was basically saying, “I’m not here to impress you. I’m not here to put on a show. I’m not here to solve all your problems. So, if you’re offended by me, then I’ll just go to another town.”
I pray that we’ll see how tragic this was – and that it could happen to us as well. Think about it. Jesus Himself was standing in front of them, opening the Scriptures, ready to teach and minister to them. Think about the potential – the things that He could’ve done, the opportunities for unbelievable things. But He couldn’t do much because of their lack of faith, their cynicism, the hardness of their hearts. The scariest part about this is that the collective cynicism in the community handcuffed Jesus from doing things for the lives of everyone else in Nazareth – not just those who rejected Him. Brothers and sisters, we must guard our hearts. Let us not rob ourselves and others in this community of the power of God. Let us never come to our service with the heart that says, “It’s what it is. It’s just another Sunday,” because God could really allow that to happen. Instead, let us come earnestly asking that He will do amazing things – that the people will be saved, comforted, encouraged, and be transformed as He is glorified in us. Let us come with great expectations in our great God.
2) THE AMAZEMENT
How did Jesus respond to them? Verse 6. “He was amazed at their lack of faith.” Do you know what’s interesting? Despite their lack of faith, Jesus wasn’t cynical toward them. He didn’t say, “I knew how they would respond. I knew what kind of people they were.” No, instead, He was simply amazed by them. Now, there are only two instances in the NT where this specific Greek word (thaumazo) was used to describe Jesus’ amazement. This is one of them and the other is from Luke 7 when Jesus saw the gentile centurion’s faith. If you think about this, it seems that two things amaze Jesus: when people believe though it’s not expected that they should believe (like the centurion) or when people don’t believe though there’s every reason why they should believe (like the people of Nazareth). Jesus was saying, “Wow, I can’t believe that this gentile centurion believed despite all the obstacles!” At the same time, “Wow, I can’t believe that these people from Nazareth, those who knew Me, are rejecting Me.” Then let me ask you, “Was Jesus ever amazed by you? If so, in what way?” Brothers and sisters, I pray that Jesus will be amazed by your faith because you’re learning to trust Him in the midst of intense suffering and trials, because you’re vigorously fighting against the sin that has been dominating in your life, because you’re joyfully, sacrificially, generously giving and serving the community, especially those who are hurting, those who are in need. In contrast, I pray that He will never be amazed for the wrong reasons. I pray that He will never say, “Wow, I’ve given him everything he needs to persevere, yet he’s giving up again. I’ve helped her every step of the way, but she’s again pursuing the world now that she’s out of her trouble.”
Now, this obviously can’t be done on our own – left to ourselves, we will rebel, we will disappoint Him, which is why we need to depend on Him, we need to let the gospel truth continually warm our hearts so that it will transform us, teach us to rely on Him. When the gospel saturates our hearts as individuals and as a community, cynicism will begin to break down. We will begin to see Jesus for who He really is and respond accordingly – as in worship and adoration, submission and trust. We will begin to see others through God’s eyes and respond accordingly – as in love and service, truth and grace. We will begin to see ourselves through God’s eyes and instead of having too high or too low a view of ourselves, we will see ourselves as God sees us – forgiven, accepted, and loved. As the gospel takes root in our community, Jesus will be able to do mighty things that we may have never imagined possible.
In one sense, I’m living proof of this grace because I was a home-grown pastor. Even though Jesus said in verse 4, “A prophet is not without honor except in His own town, among His relatives and in His own home,” thankfully, this was not something that I experienced. As many of you know, in the previous church I was at, I grew up there before I became a pastor and served for close to 13 years. People could’ve said, “I know him; he’s no good. He’s too young; what does he have to offer?” – and they could’ve rejected me, let me go. But overall, by God’s grace, I had a wonderful ministry there. God did amazing things in and through me. All this to say, I’ve tasted the goodness of God when the community was saturated in the gospel; and I have no doubt that all of us will experience that, and even more, here at Lighthouse as we continually immerse ourselves in the gospel. I pray that we would be a community that amazes Jesus, of course, in a good way.
3) THE LESSON
If you remember, I mentioned in the very beginning that one of the reasons why Jesus came back to Nazareth might have been to show and teach something to His disciples. Then how does this relate to everything that I’ve been sharing so far? Let me explain. Think about what the disciples saw in chapters 4 and 5. They witnessed Jesus calming the storm, casting out demons, healing a woman who had been bleeding for twelve years, and bringing a little girl from the dead – and all this, only with His Word. Now, Jesus has been preparing His disciples not just to witness the Kingdom work but to participate in it – for them to be sent out to do the same. We know this because that’s exactly what they were called to do in chapter 3. “He appointed twelve that they might be with Him and that He might send them out to preach and to have authority to drive out demons” (Mk. 3:14-15). Now, they were about to be sent out to their first mission trip without Jesus physically accompanying them. The danger was that they were going to go with this unrealistic expectation. After seeing all the miracles, they might have thought, “Well, Jesus gave us authority – all we have to do is say a few words, and great things will happen. People will be saved, and their lives will be transformed!” But Jesus knew that it wouldn’t always turn out that way – so, I think He wanted to show them how unsuccessful ministry can be, how cynical people can be, how hostile people can be against them. So, He brought them to His hometown. In other words, this short visit to Nazareth was part of Jesus’ plan to prepare His disciples for ministry – for them to know that they too could be rejected and hated just like Jesus was, that ministry may not be always fruitful.
Then in light of what they saw in Nazareth, how does Jesus instruct them? Look carefully: if you read through His instructions in verse 8, you’ll notice that Jesus spends more time on how they should go rather than what they need to do. Do you see that? Jesus was telling them to travel light – “Don’t take anything other than a walking stick and whatever you’re wearing right now.” He expected that they get what they need in ministry through the hospitality of others. Why? Simply put, Jesus was calling His disciples to trust God to supply everything they would need on this trip – physically if they lacked something and emotionally if they got rejected. In other words, Jesus was calling them to a journey of faith. And this too is how we should do ministry.
Listen to what Jesus says in John 15:18, “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated Me first.” Brothers and sisters, as followers of Jesus Christ, He is calling all of us to something greater, something higher but He’s also reminding us that our faithfulness to Him will offend people, and they will reject us because they hate Jesus. So, when we are ridiculed by our faith, we shouldn’t be surprised. Yet, we can endure through this because of what Jesus says in Matthew 5:11-12, “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” Then through this passage, I believe that He’s calling us to step out in faith just like the disciples did – relying completely on His provision and power. We must trust God to give us strength in our weakness, courage in our fear, and wisdom in our darkness. Listen to what Pastor David Platt says, “Your heart was not made to be glad in hoarding the gospel; that’s not where joy and satisfaction in life are found. Your heart was made to be glad and experience life by giving the gospel away. This is what we’re made for, and God is waiting for us to step out and trust Him to do what only He can do.” Don’t you want to live this kind of life?
Now, if you feel like you’re not ready or you’re too inadequate to do His work or tell others about Jesus, just look to the Twelve that Jesus was sending out. From our perspective, they were strong, mature, ready servants of God – and they absolutely became that. But at this point in the book of Mark, they weren’t. In fact, they were far from it. Just two chapters before, they were afraid and faithless in the middle of the storm. In chapter 5, they were frustrated at Jesus for stopping in the middle of an urgent situation, not knowing that He wanted to minister to this woman. Later, we’ll find them arguing about who’s better than the others. And of course, at the crucifixion, they all abandoned Jesus – fleeing for their lives. But here they were, being sent out, representing Jesus. How is this possible? Wouldn’t they do more damage to His name? Well, this was possible because they weren’t going out with their own power and wisdom. The key truth here is that Jesus was sending them out. They were being equipped with the power and authority that came from Him.
It’s true that none of us are fully ready or adequate to do His work. All of us struggle with faith one way or another. We have so much more to learn about the Bible and what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. We’re tired and exhausted from dealing with the weight and pressures of life. All of us still wrestle with sin, doubts, fears, and worries. We’re timid, scared to share the gospel – and we certainly don’t want to offend people and be rejected, hated by them. If this is true of you, you need to hear this truth again: we have been saved by Jesus to be sent out in His name with His authority to do His work in His power. The work that we do is always through the strength that God gives. We’re simply responsible for being faithful as God will be responsible for being fruitful. Listen to Pastor Kevin DeYoung, “The work of God is dependent on the Word of God, the call of God, and the equipping of God much more it is dependent on the people of God.”
Then how can we apply this truth to our lives today? Well, Easter is only two weeks away. Then think intentionally about who in your life you could invite to church to hear the gospel preached, or to join ALPHA with you to explore deeper things as to what Christianity is all about (which of course, means that you have to carve out your time for this), or invite them to your home for a meal or a coffee to share how God has been ministering to you, or to simply ask them if there’s anything you could pray for them. There are countless ways you could apply this truth as you continue in the Kingdom work. Now, let’s be honest; I’m not sharing anything new – it’s not something that you’ve never heard before. You’ve received this call before – to go and share the gospel, to be faithful not fruitful, to be ready for rejection and hostility. In other words, this call is familiar to us – but I pray that this familiarity will not cause us to be inactive or worse cynical that we miss out on the opportunity for God to do something amazing in and through us. Yes, it’s true that these people may not respond positively, but who knows? To your surprise, maybe they will – maybe they will say, “Yes,” maybe they will come out to church or ALPHA, maybe what you share might be something that they needed to hear to get through life, maybe they will even give their life to Jesus and thank you for stepping out in faith, for not giving up on them – who knows? Then let us obey this call to go and make disciples with great expectations for He is with us.
CONCLUSION
Lighthouse family, Jesus offends people, which means that our faithfulness to Christ will offend others. We may experience rejection just as Jesus received them throughout His life. But despite the challenge, Jesus is continually sending us out to preach and demonstrate the Word – He wants us to take the gospel and make it known to the people around us. Why? Because this Word really is life-giving, hope-filled; it’s one thing that this world really needs to hear. Then let us not be timid; let us not seek comfort and safety. Relying on His power and authority, let us go out declaring that Jesus is the Savior King, who died for our sin but rose again to bring us life. God will in His time make the harvest ready; we simply need to be faithful.
Discussion questions
Have you become too familiar with Jesus? How might your familiarity with Jesus affect your response to and intimacy with Him? How can you break out of that familiarity to grow deeper in relationship with Him?
Jesus was amazed at their lack of faith. Do you sometimes display an amazing lack of trust in Jesus? How can you avoid this?
Think about Jesus’ instruction for their ministry in verses 8-11. What can we learn from this? How can we apply this in the way we do evangelism?
Share with one another someone that God is inviting you to pray for, love, and share the gospel with. Spend some time praying for them – and for one another that we would obey depending on His power and wisdom.